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DIY Custom Head Board

Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi and Jionni are ready to tackle the last bedroom and it’s all about bringing the shore inside! What better way to do that than to utilize old exterior decking? With beautiful distressed ocean blue hues and large wide planks it’s perfect for up cycling into a gorgeous headboard. Who wouldn’t want to be a guest in this beach themed paradise? Feeling inspired and ready to take on your very own DIY Headboard? Here’s what you will need:

Supplies Needed:

Miter saw

Tape measure

Drill gun

Large drill bit

Salvaged lumber (or new)

Wood screws (based on wood thickness)

Sand paper

Twine

Oars (anything decorative)

Painters tape

Steps:

Decide on your headboard height. A trick is to look at your mattress and measure how high above the mattress you want the headboard. Mark the wall and measure from that high point to the floor. Nicole decided 67 inches was the perfect height to have room for the decorative oars.

Arrange each piece of wood in the order you want (mixing up various tones of color).

Nicole and Jionni chose to up cycle blue decking that has beveled edges. However, even if your wood pieces aren’t similar and don’t align perfectly, it will still look great. There is no right or wrong way to select the wood.

Now you will need to create your back bracing. This is simple enough. Cut two pieces of your same lumber spanning horizontally from the edge to edge of your headboard.

Screw the horizontal pieces onto the headboard. A trick is to use painters tape to the keep the boards in place while screwing in the bracing. This will keep all your pieces from slipping out of alignment. Add as many opposing bracing strips as necessary to give rigidity.

Now that you have your basic headboard its time to add the decorative final touch. The oars! Nicole and Jionni found these oars at a local thrift shop. However, any decorative pieces will work.

Affix the oars using 1-inch wood screws through the back of the headboard to secure them into place.

Drill holes into the front façade under each side of the oars to fasten decorative jute rope to give the illusion the rope is holding the boards in place.

You did it! Step back admire your hard work. Now its time for a well deserved rest in your new bed!

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Joshua Altman – Award-Winning Designer & Master Real Estate Flipper. Josh has always had a thirst for interior design. After graduating UC Berkeley, he dove into the world of design and real estate. Josh found himself at the top of the design map after successfully gutting and reimagining one of the most coveted & historic homes in San Diego. He is highly sought after for his trademark “Coastal Elegance” designs. After a decade of successful renovations, Josh recently opened the boutique design and real estate firm “Swoon” in San Diego, California. Josh has recently been featured in Dwell, Star Magazine, FYI, ABC, TheList, CW Television, LifeStyle, RAGE, and numerous talk show and television appearances.